Reviews are out for M. Night Shyamalan’s latest effort “Knock at the Cabin” and the results are… confusing.
The film sees four strangers show up at a remote cabin where a gay couple and their daughter are vacationing. The strangers claim that the end of the world is near and the only thing that will keep the apocalypse from happening is a sacrifice.
On the one hand, with 62 reviews counted, the film has hit a 71% on Rotten Tomatoes which is actually one of the filmmakers better scores – on par with “Unbreakable” (70%) and behind only “The Sixth Sense” “86%), “Split” (78%), and “Signs” (75%) and just above “The Visit” (68%).
On the other hand, the negative reviews are very negative with a lot of criticism lobbed at the film’s last act and the ending(s) frustrating some of the reviewers. Most of the reviews praise the performances however, with Dave Bautista in particular singled out for praise.
Here’s a sampling of review quotes:
“It’s an apocalyptic dilemma that requires a suspension of disbelief — a whopping helping of disbelief — but the movie is still a taut, well-acted thriller.” David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle
“The fact that Shyamalan seems to be working out some issues onscreen doesn’t stop him from crafting a thriller, and one which goes about its job with steady determination in Cabin’s cryptic, superior first half.” David Fear, Rolling Stone
“Shyamalan might have found his perfect collaborator in Bautista, who nails the tricky balance of earnest tone and stilted dialogue typical of the filmmaker’s movies, all while radiating a terrifying, unreadable fanaticism” Hoai-Tran Bui, Inverse
“The more you realize where Shyamalan is leading us — and by this point, it’s not exactly a surprise destination — the more difficult it becomes to locate a worthwhile point.” Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times
“‘Knock at the Cabin’ takes a premise audiences think they know and does something unconventional and (alas) frustrating with it. Trouble is, these days, it’s no surprise to be let down by a Shyamalan movie.” Peter DeBruge, Variety
“The message is mostly lost in sentiment, and a lingering sense of the better, messier movie that might have been.” Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly
“As sturdily crafted as ‘Knock at the Cabin’ may be, Shyamalan’s funny games never achieve the profundity they’re reaching for, ending up as a preachy end-times message movie wrapped up in a slick horror package.” Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire
“Shyamalan’s previous film, the excellent horror-thriller Old, showed that he is certainly capable of maintaining a good idea to the finish line. Sadly, though, not this time.” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
The R-rated film, made on a $20 million budget, is currently tracking to pull in a $15-17 million opening weekend and could well knock “Avatar: The Way of Water” off the top of the box-office. It’s going up against “80 for Brady” which has also pulled in a 70% RT rating.
